I have a table within MSSQL of type varchar(max) it contains base64 strings of different types of files like pdf and images.
I'm now experiencing slow load and response on pages with datagrid retrieving this table or tables with a varchar(max) field .
e.g.: displaying a 3.5 MB pdf (base64) with Iframe times out and does not show the file .
The only advice I can give you is to not request these fields if you do not plan to show the data. Do not request them also at once. You can have for example View button in a DataGrid column where you can open a separate page to display the document.